The present invention relates to an improved medical lancet means for effecting bleeding by puncturing the skin of an individual to permit the collection of a drop of blood for diagnostic purposes or similar medical use.
It is known to puncture the skin with a lancet retaining body which is used in combination with a separate mechanical apparatus including a biased striker mechanism and a device to release the striker. The striker mechanism has a support for mounting a lancet retaining body therein. Such an apparatus is expensive in manufacture and time-consuming in use. When the lancet is mounted in the support there is the danger of the sterile lancet being accidentally touched with the fingers or other objects with consequent danger of bacterial contamination of the lancet. Neither is it possible to make the lancet tip invisible to the patient.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an improved medical lancet means which can be produced more economically and which can be used more conveniently and safely than previously designed lancets.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a medical lancet means which does not require packaging in a separate wrapper in order to insure the sterility thereof and which makes use of all members thereof for the incision including the member that protects the lancet tip.
These and other objects of this invention will become apparent from the detailed description and the claims to follow when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.